00:01Most windows are dark in this building housing Citigroup.
00:04The U.S. banking giant, along with Britain's Standard Chartered and consultancy Deloitte,
00:10told their staff to evacuate offices in Dubai's financial center.
00:14Another British consultancy, PwC, closed offices in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE and Kuwait.
00:21Separately, HSBC temporarily shut down all branches in Qatar to ensure the safety of customers and employees.
00:30This just two days after its CEO said the bank remained committed to doing business in the Gulf region.
00:37HSBC remains steadfast in our confidence in the Gulf Cooperation Council
00:41and in the long-term strength, resilience and promise of the region.
00:45Our conviction in the GCC's fundamentals and its future is unchanged.
00:51The moves came after the Iranian military threatened to target economic and banking interests linked to the U.S. and
00:58Israel.
00:59Although the firms continue to provide services through remote work,
01:02the latest escalation puts Dubai's safe-haven status under further pressure.
01:07The Emirates' economic success comes from decades of aggressive diversification drive,
01:12with non-oil sectors now making up 95 percent of its GDP.
01:16And the Dubai International Financial Center, a special economic zone created in 2004,
01:22has been a magnet for investments by offering zero corporate tax.
01:26It has nearly 9,000 active registered companies and the number is growing fast.
01:31More than 50,000 people work in the DIFC, delivering annual net profit of 1.48 billion dirhams, about 350
01:39million euros.
01:40It's not just the financial sector that's been caught in the crossfire.
01:44The city's lucrative wholesale and retail trade, as well as real estate and tourism, have all been hurt.
01:50The authenticity of the U.S.各位 collect že to date coming up with those two web ports.
01:50Any impacted instance?
01:51Toadn't, toadn't make sense!
01:51T act like a backlog on the exchange of desks,
01:51It is out of your available gates that are unable to make the market.
01:51So it's not just one sidebar.
01:51So this subject of the view here,
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